Filling and Blessing [Statue Consecration]

According to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, Buddha statues are filled in a particular way with precious items and then blessed by a qualified lama (monk) so that the ultimate awareness of the Buddha is invited to enter in and merge with the statues. In this way, Buddha statues become like a living entity capable of giving blessing. Filling statues is therefore a very meaningful activity. It is said that by filling statues we create the cause to become â€˜filledâ€™ with realizations ourselves. The process of having a statue filled connects one to the Buddha represented by the statue. There are great benefits for the body, speech and mind in filling a statue. Filling it completes the body, speech and mind of the Buddha by helping to transform how we see the statue.